Alright: Two players, one GM. Why is this special?

Alright: Two players, one GM. Why is this special?

Alright: Two players, one GM. Why is this special?

There’s a dynamic of opposing interests from three or more players (think rock, paper, and scissors) that’s missing. There’s a sense of forced camaraderie. There’s a lot of time spent in the spotlight.

But I enjoyed a solid session of Adventures on Dungeon Planet with two players this week, and here’s what I think helped:

*Ensure the players have different interests, but (at least) one shared goal. Maybe they have wildly disparate reasons for arriving at Planet Y, but they both want to get there.

*Externalize a threat. When the two players work together, it’s the reasonable thing to do against a common obstacle, regardless of if they’re friends.

*Shine the spotlight bright. There is so much more time to explore personal motives, hidden pasts, and moment-to-moment reactions with only two players. Encourage vignettes, jump cuts, and flash forwards because there’s time for it.

How has playing in or running a game with only two players been special for you?

16 thoughts on “Alright: Two players, one GM. Why is this special?”

  1. I did a session with James Etheridge​, Ian Crockett​ and surge4game​, but Ian had to leave somewhat toward the end. It wound up going over time a bit and we resolved it with a 2 player PBP. One player was a wizard distracting a giant salamander, while the other player was a Princess attempting to stop an evil fairy who was controlling it with a giant magic item from her chambers. Going back and forth between them to see if they would somehow “fail” the other character was fascinating for me. The situation was actually super dangerous, and I expected a death. However, the players rolled well, and got out of a bad sitch with a magic item each.

    It was just fun for me to see it cinematically play out in a way that both situations could be happening simultaneously.

  2. I did a session with James Etheridge​, Ian Crockett​ and surge4game​, but Ian had to leave somewhat toward the end. It wound up going over time a bit and we resolved it with a 2 player PBP. One player was a wizard distracting a giant salamander, while the other player was a Princess attempting to stop an evil fairy who was controlling it with a giant magic item from her chambers. Going back and forth between them to see if they would somehow “fail” the other character was fascinating for me. The situation was actually super dangerous, and I expected a death. However, the players rolled well, and got out of a bad sitch with a magic item each.

    It was just fun for me to see it cinematically play out in a way that both situations could be happening simultaneously.

  3. I ran Dungeon World for two players, really enjoyed it. Narrative, the partners thing makes much more sense ( and is far more common in fiction ) than the adventuring party (which as far as I can tell is a hangover from the Fellowship of the Rings and comes up much less often). Aside from that, I’m not a fan of different agendas at the table. It’s only ever caused trouble for me.

    I’m actually designing a game for those numbers at the minute, though it’s built for one shots. The having shared goals but opposing approaches is baked into the rules.

  4. I ran Dungeon World for two players, really enjoyed it. Narrative, the partners thing makes much more sense ( and is far more common in fiction ) than the adventuring party (which as far as I can tell is a hangover from the Fellowship of the Rings and comes up much less often). Aside from that, I’m not a fan of different agendas at the table. It’s only ever caused trouble for me.

    I’m actually designing a game for those numbers at the minute, though it’s built for one shots. The having shared goals but opposing approaches is baked into the rules.

  5. In a legendary game of Burning Wheel run by Judd Karlman, I played an orc alongside Jim, who played my PC’s second-in-command. For a year of sessions, we strove to grow the horde and our own renown, all the while knowing that one day, his character would turn on mine.

    It was this intense partnership that hung on the edge of betrayal, and it was fierce and primal and amazing.

  6. In a legendary game of Burning Wheel run by Judd Karlman, I played an orc alongside Jim, who played my PC’s second-in-command. For a year of sessions, we strove to grow the horde and our own renown, all the while knowing that one day, his character would turn on mine.

    It was this intense partnership that hung on the edge of betrayal, and it was fierce and primal and amazing.

  7. Richard Rogers, that sounds fantastic. That sounds like a perfect amount of tension in a partnership. There’s something so intimate about that long journey of the duo. Love it!

  8. Richard Rogers, that sounds fantastic. That sounds like a perfect amount of tension in a partnership. There’s something so intimate about that long journey of the duo. Love it!

  9. Oli Jeffery That’s a good point about so many familiar tropes about adventuring duos! Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are more fun inspiration to me than the Fellowship of the Ring, haha.

    I’t’d be great to see more games designed with small groups in mind! Keep us posted. 🙂

  10. Oli Jeffery That’s a good point about so many familiar tropes about adventuring duos! Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are more fun inspiration to me than the Fellowship of the Ring, haha.

    I’t’d be great to see more games designed with small groups in mind! Keep us posted. 🙂

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